June 12, 2009 - Athens - The days of cigarette friendly Greece are about to go up in smoke as the government announced a ban against smoking in the workplace to take effect starting July 1, 2009. The new law will have a heavy impact on a nation where nearly 45 per cent of the adult population smokes, and where smoking in offices and cafes is seen as a traditional pastime. We wonder about enforcement.. - TobaccoWatch.org.

Greece, one of Europe's heaviest smoking nations, had initially allowed for designated smoking rooms to be set aside in state and private businesses under the new law, but the minister of health ruled that option out on Thursday.

"As of July 1 no smoking will be allowed anywhere in the workplace," said Health Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos. He said the government will only pass a partial ban for restaurants and bars, saying smaller establishments will become strictly non-smoking but larger businesses were allowed to designate smoking and non-smoking areas.Under the new law, smoking will be banned in other public places such as schools, universities, state offices, hospitals and on all forms of public transport.

The Health Ministry said the new law is aimed at saving the lives of an estimated 20,000 people who die of smoking-related diseases every year, adding that the habit costs the state more than 2 billion euros a year.

The imminent ban on smoking appears to have given some people the incentive to kick the habit, as some hospital clinics that help people quit are reporting waiting lists of up to three months.

According to a newspaper published in the Greek daily Kathimerini, hospital clinics indicated there was a rush of people wanting to quit. The University Hospital of Larissa, in central Greece, said it had no appointments available until after the end of September while at Evangelismos Hospital in central Athens, appointments were available after August. Officials said that there are less than 40 clinics across Greece that help people kick the smoking habit and that number will have to increase to satisfy demand.

June 12, 2009 - The House of Representatives, which first passed a similar FDA bill in April, voted 307-97 to endorse the version (that includes Merkley-Brown Amendment..) passed 79-17 by the Senate on Thursday, 6/11.

Congress on Friday sent to the White House legislation that gives the federal government vast new powers to regulate and restrict cigarettes, the single largest cause of preventable death. President Barack Obama hailed the moment, saying it "truly defines changes in Washington."

The measure, more than a decade in the making, for the first time gives the Food and Drug Administration authority to examine what goes into tobacco products, ban those ingredients deemed dangerous to health and limit marketing and sales. Fierce opposition by the industry and tobacco-state lawmakers had prevented passage for years, along with veto threats by the George W. Bush White House. In the end, the nation's biggest tobacco company supported the measure, though rivals suggested that was because it could lock in Philip Morris' share of the market.

The legislation, one of the most dramatic anti-smoking initiatives since the surgeon general's report, would give the Food and Drug Administration authority to regulate the content, marketing and advertising of cigarettes and other tobacco products.

June 12, 2009 - To determine whether chronic exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) in childhood could lead to the development of early emphysema, the Dr. Gina Lovasi and colleagues analyzed 1,781 adults who had never smoked from Multi-Ethnic Study of Artherosclerosis (MESA). The CT images showed that some of the areas of lungs had indications of early emphysema: large contiguous areas of air-like density (”holes”, in contrast to lung tissue, which is more dense than air) or the total percentage of lung volume with air-like density.Researchers have warned that constant exposure to tobacco smoke puts children at a higher risk of developing early emphysema later in life. Lovasi: “Emphysematous ‘holes’ in the lung that begin as small areas of damage or impaired development may expand according to a fractal trajectory after an earlier insult.”

“We hypothesized that environmental tobacco smoke in childhood may be one such early insult, associated with signs of early emphysema detectable on computed tomography (CT) scan in adulthood and perhaps lower lung function detectable by spirometry,” Lovasi added.

“The take-home message from our analysis is that exposure to tobacco smoke during childhood may be associated with detectable differences in lung structure, and perhaps early emphysema, later in life among people who do not themselves smoke,” said Lovasi. “These findings might also help researchers to understand how lung damage develops,” Lovasi added.

The data were presented on Tuesday, May 19, at the 105th International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in San Diego.

June 12, 2009 - A new Indiana law taking effect July 1 will require all cigarettes sold in Indiana to burn out more quickly when left unattended in an effort to reduce the number of smoking-related fires. The new design forces a smoker to inhale to get the flame through two strips of paper incorporated into the cigarette. If left unattended, the cigarette will go out.

Jess Brewer of Lafayette, who recently traveled to Kentucky, where the new law was implemented in April 2008, finds the new cigarettes harder to smoke. "Since coming back from Kentucky about a week ago, I've been coughing constantly and having chest pains because you have to inhale harder on the new cigarettes," she said. "... What's the point of making safer cigarettes if they lead to negative health effects?"The fire-safe packs sell for the same price as traditional cigarettes, Parish said. The new law, passed in 2008, doesn't apply to cigarettes that consumers roll themselves.

Indiana had 138 smoking-related fires last year, leading to four deaths, 11 injuries and $3.4 million in property damage, according to the National Fire Incident Reporting System. Cigarette-ignited fires are the leading cause of home fire deaths in the United States, killing 700 to 900 people annually, the National Fire Protection Agency reports.

Lafayette fire prevention Chief Ron Ritchey said the new cigarettes will help prevent fires. "There are a multitude of factors that cut down on cigarette house fires, like flame-resistant mattresses. We're getting smarter about this problem and tackling it from all angles," he said.

Brandon Grimes of Lafayette said he thinks the mandate will have a bigger effect on the number of smokers when compared to the number of house fires. "If it causes too much of a hassle, it could lead to less smokers in the long run," he said. "If it increases the overall health of people, then it could be a change for the better. It might make it easier for me to quit."

June 12, 2009 - Researchers at Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA and Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, CA have discovered a reason why smoking greatly increases the risk of heart disease and stroke. Nicotine promotes insulin resistance, also called prediabetes, which is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, according to the new study, which was presented at The Endocrine Society's 91st Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

Additionally, the study authors were able to partially reverse this harmful effect of nicotine in mice by treating them with the nicotine antagonist mecamylamine, a drug that blunts the action of nicotine.Their results may explain why cigarette smokers have a high cardiovascular death rate, even though "smoking causes weight loss, which should protect against heart disease," said the study's lead author, Theodore Friedman, MD, PhD, chief of the endocrinology division at Charles Drew University.

Prediabetes and diabetes are known risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Past studies show that cigarette smokers tend to be insulin resistant, meaning that their hormone insulin does not work properly. To compensate, their blood glucose (sugar) levels become higher than normal but not yet high enough for diabetes. Smokers also have higher rates of diabetes, but it is not clear whether smoking is the cause, because they could have other risk factors, Friedman explained.

Some studies demonstrate that nicotine and cigarette smoking induce high levels of the stress hormone cortisol. "As cortisol excess is known to induce insulin resistance, it has been suggested that glucocorticoids, such as cortisol, are the missing [causative] link between cigarette smoking and insulin resistance," Friedman said.

The new study results suggest this theory is correct, he said. The researchers studied the effects, on 24 adult mice, of twice-daily injections of nicotine for 2 weeks. The mice ate less food than control mice that received injections without nicotine, and they also lost weight and had less fat. Despite this, the mice receiving nicotine developed prediabetes (insulin resistance), which subsequent mecamylamine treatment improved somewhat. These mice also had high cortisol levels in their blood and tissues, and mecamylamine blocked this effect.

"Our results suggest that reducing tissue glucocorticoid levels or decreasing insulin resistance may reduce the heart disease seen in smokers," Friedman said. "We anticipate that in the future there will be drugs to specifically block the effect of nicotine on glucocorticoids and insulin resistance."

Currently available nicotine antagonists are not specific enough to completely block nicotine's effects or they have bothersome side effects, so better drugs are needed for this purpose, he said.

Children and teenagers are prone to be the main target of the cigarette industry, medical doctors, professors, and activists said Saturday.

Speaking in a discussion on the need for picture warnings on cigarette packs, they agreed that as the third biggest consumer of cigarettes in the world (according to the World Health Organization 2008 data), Indonesia needed to more intensely protect children and adolescents.

They strongly proposed warnings in the packages had to include images of the dangers of smoking and its effects, such as lung cancer, mouth cancer and strokes.

The speakers said pictures would be more effective than words.

"The cigarette industry targets children and adolescents, for they are future smokers," said M. Joni, deputy head of the National Commission on Child Protection.

According to the Central Statistical Agency, a high incidence of smoking is found in children between 15 and 19 years old, with an increase of 12.9 percent in 2001 to 17 percent in 2004.

"Just look at cigarette advertisements, they never use old people, they use young, healthy teen idols," Joni said in the discussion, which was held by the Tobacco Control Support Center (TCSC) in cooperation with the Indonesian Association of Public Health Experts.

Lung cancer patients are also getting younger, from an average of 19 years old in 1995 to 17 in 2004, according to the TCSC.

Farid Anfasa Moeloek, head of the National Commission on Tobacco Control, said two important things in controlling cigarettes were the government's political will and regulations that really protected the public, especially on cigarette distribution, cigarette advertisements, and the distribution of information on the dangers of nicotine.

Indonesia is the only Asian country that has not ratified the FCTC - the WHO's Framework Convention for Tobacco Control.

Although Indonesia had contributed to the drafting of the FCTC in Geneva, the government has yet to ratify the convention.

The clauses brought by Indonesia and used in FCTC included protection for children under 20 years old, increasing tax from 70 to 80 percent, advertising regulations and health warnings.

Farid said the increased tax could be used for public health programs.

"With the current 37 percent tax, the government can have about Rp 54 trillion. This should be used to address smokers' health problems."

"If cigarette taxes are increased, more funds would be available to provide public health insurance.

"And it's not the industry who will pay for it. It would come from the public, in form of higher prices of cigarettes." (iwp)

June 11, 2009 - ISTANBUL - Ahead of the national smoking ban due to be put in place July 19, Health Minister Recep Akdağ has announced that ministry mangers who smoke either need to quit or give up their positions of authority.

Smoking will be banned in cafes, restaurants and other enclosed public places across Turkey in just over one month’s time. In preparation for the ban’s adoption, the Health Ministry has launched various projects around the country to raise awareness about the health risks of smoking and promote strategies for quitting before the ban.

Following a recent project in İzmir, where representatives from the ministry educated 300 people in 30 districts over three days about smoking, Dr. Oğuz Kılınç read a message from Akdağ saying the health minister was insistent that managers working in health services set an example and quit smoking ahead of the ban. "We are extremely happy with this decision by the Health Ministry and it has made us more enthusiastic to work for this cause," Kılinç said.

An expert on management law, Professor Ülkü Azrak said such an order could not be made. "If you ask me, this is a very strange decision and such a decision will not be passed by law. I therefore believe this is a wrong decision proposed by the Health Ministry," Azrak said, adding people cannot be stopped from smoking in designated areas.

June 11, 2009 - The City passed a law in 2008 that banned drugstores such as Walgreens and Rite-Aid from selling tobacco products. The company sued, but in a judge denied the lawsuit, leading to an appeal.

“Basically the way the ordinance is written now, big-box stores and supermarkets that operate pharmacies can still sell cigarettes, and that’s not fair because it singles us out,” Walgreen Co. spokesman Robert Elfinger said. The City fired back Wednesday, June 10th with a 39-page brief. “Consumers reasonably expect drugstores to serve their health needs, not to enable their deadliest habits,” said City Attorney Dennis Herrera.Reference: City responds to Walgreens suit over tobacco sales by Brent Begin, San Francisco Examiner Staff Writer, 6/10/2009.

June 11, 2008 - approximately 3pm EDT The U.S. Senate on Thursday, June 11th backed a plan giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration power to regulate cigarettes and other tobacco products, allowing the agency to curb advertisements, require stronger package warnings and inspect manufacturers.

Supporters said the bill, which passed in a bipartisan 79-17 vote, would help rein in the tobacco industry and curb smoking, especially among teenagers and children. The only Democrat voting against the bill was Senator Kay Hagen of North Carolina, said Thomas Briant, executive director of the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO).

President Barack Obama, who has discussed his own struggles to quit smoking, is expected to sign the bill into law.

Under the Senate plan, industry user fees would fund a new FDA tobacco division to inspect manufacturers as well as set certain cigarette standards. The bill also restricts vending machine sales and curbs advertising targeting youth.

June 11, 2008 - Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) director Ben Youdan: Cigarette companies are using "loopholes" in legislation to cut prices and reverse smokers' quit rates, anti-smoking groups say. The recent lowering of the price of some brands at the bottom end of the tobacco market was an "underhand and cynical attempt to discourage people from quitting smoking".

Just recently the New Zealand government announced it was reviewing the $37 million it spends on stop smoking campaigns because they don’t seem to be working.

While it was illegal for individual retailers to discount cigarettes, supply companies can make country-wide price adjustments.

Tobacco giant British American Tobacco (BAT said its national price cut was in response to similar moves by competitors. BAT's Pall Mall and Freedom cigarette prices have been lowered by about 50c a packet, with Freedom's "limited edition" packet selling for $1.10 less.

A recorded message on the BAT phone number said the price of cigarettes was about 66 per cent tax. Fifty cents out of the remaining 34 percent meant the company was taking about a 15 percent drop in its returns. BAT head of corporate and regulatory affairs Susan Jones said the price moves were in response to cuts by competitors like Imperial Tobacco's Horizon and John Brandon brands. BAT has 76 per cent of the New Zealand market and owns six of the top 10 brands, including the country's top two brands, Horizon and Benson and Hedges. Pall Mall is the country's fifth-best seller. Jones said Pall Mall and Freedom were "value" brands, but their prices were "still terrifically high and still very highly taxed".

Youdan said companies blaming each other for the price drop was beside the point one of them had started the move and the outcome was that both had lower prices that removed the incentive for smokers to quit. Youdan said New Zealand had good quit rates. "The best thing to decrease smoking is to raise the price," he said. "They are using loopholes in the Smoke-free Environments Act. They (retailers) are forbidden to offer them at a reduced rate other than 'normal trade discounts'." A complaint had been laid with the Ministry of Health, Youdan said.

Every 10 per cent increase in the price of cigarettes reduced youth smoking by seven per cent and overall cigarette consumption by about four percent. - TobaccoWatch.org..

June 11, 2009 - The Eagle City Council approved a ban on smoking in public places including restaurants, bars and workplaces. This new ordinance makes Eagle the first city in Idaho to ban smoking, and goes beyond state law which does not ban smoking in bars. Smokers could still light up at private residences. On July 1, 2004, Idaho passed legislation that ensures smokefree restaurants.

The vote for the ban was three to two in favor. Eagle mayor Phil Bandy cast the deciding vote. “My position is that any that a perspective employee of any place of work shouldn't have to worry about whether or not they're going to go into a place and be subjected to direct or second hand smoke,” Bandy said. “That shouldn't even come into the equation."

It's unclear when this ordinance will take effect.Violators will receive a written warning for the first offense. The fine is $25 for the second offense, and $50 for the third. Business owners or managers who don't abide by the smoking ban may be fined up to $100 for the first offense, $200 for the second, and $500 for the third. In some cases, the city may revoke or suspend a business license.

June 11, 2009 - New York’s top court says New York (NY) City lacks legal standing to sue Internet cigarette retailers for lost taxes under state business laws. The Court of Appeals says the city and state now charge $4.25 per pack in excise taxes, which are owed by purchasers in New York.

The city argued some online retailers misrepresent their cigarettes as “tax free” and claim that they don’t have to file state sales reports identifying buyers, which is required by federal law.

June 11, 2009 - The U.S. Senate voted 67-30 today to limit debate on the bill, and Democrats say they have enough votes to win final passage. But a final vote is not expected until Thursday, June 11th. Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, who is pushing Kennedy's priorities while the senator undergoes treatment, told Bloomberg News.

The House passed a very similar bill earlier this year (H.R.1256) and resolution of the minor differences would send the bill to President Obama, who supports it. The House version, e.g., must add the Merkley-Brown Amendment on Tobacco Candy... Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR): "Tobacco candies (R.J. Reynolds Camel Dissolvables) clearly designed to appeal to children through both packaging and taste. This is not a safe product. This is not safe tobacco. It is a product that, like cigarettes, causes cancer and kills."

A major hurdle to passage was cleared away Tuesday, June 9th when the Senate rejected a competing bill from the two senators from North Carolina, the nation's biggest tobacco producer.

June 10, 2009 - Fitch Ratings, an international credit rating agency, on Wednesday, June 10th said legislation pending in the U.S. Senate that will place regulation of the tobacco industry in the hands of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will likely benefit the big established brands.

Compliance costs will hurt smaller players, while planned changes to tobacco advertising will cement the market position of bigger companies, the agency said in a statement. "Looking further ahead as more restrictive advertising limits are imposed on all tobacco products, not just cigarettes, the brands with larger market share will maintain those shares," it said.The Senate bill passed a procedural vote on Wednesday clearing the way for final passage. A final vote could come as soon as Thursday. The Senators will than have to work out differences with a similar bill passed in the U.S. House of Representatives before forwarding it to President Barack Obama for signature.

The new legislation may speed up the launch of lower-risk tobacco products, although these will face resistance from existing smokers, said the agency. Companies will also find it hard to market reduced-risk tobacco products as current advertising and sale restrictions will remain in place and may even be expanded by the FDA.

Still, "creating a regulatory framework particularly for the introduction of new products may revitalize the U.S. tobacco industry, where the consumption of its primary product, cigarettes, has been declining for over a decade," said analyst and senior director Wesley Moultrie.

If companies succeed in bringing modified products to the marketplace, "sizeable shifts in the tobacco industry are possible," he said. For more, see [ID:nWNA6398]. (Reporting by Ciara Linnane; Editing by Theodore d'Afflisio)

June 10, 2009 - New Delhi: Graphic pictorial warnings like a cancer-disfigured face or diseased lungs - to highlight the hazards of tobacco intake - were supposed to have hit the market May 31, 2009. But they are nowhere in sight and the tobacco industry says it will take more time.

"Given the fact that the various trade channels hold fairly large quantities of inventory, it will take some time for stocks with the new health warnings to be available in the marketplace," Udayan Lall, director of the Tobacco Institute of India (TII), told IANS. The TII is an organization representing farmers, exporters, manufacturers and ancillaries of the cigarette segments of the tobacco industry.

Tobacco products with gory pictures were expected over 10 days ago - the skull and crossbones warning being optional for cigarette packs. Tobacco vendors in the country say they are left with no choice but to sell the old stock.The delay in the health warnings reaching the market has been strongly criticized by NGOs (non-government organizationa) and health professionals. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

India records about 800,000 tobacco deaths every year or 2,200 deaths a day.

Sunita Gupta, convenor, Indian Cancer Society: "Display of pictorial warnings on tobacco products is one of the most proven ways to reduce tobacco consumption. It is a matter of great disappointment that after so much struggle, the pictorial warnings on tobacco products are still not there."

Stating the example of Thailand and other countries that have long implemented the warnings, Bhavna Mukhopadhyay of the Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) said: "Over a period of time, we have seen a decrease in the sale of cigarettes in countries that have long implemented this rule. No change is seen overnight. Wait and watch, things will change."

However, cigarette vendors believe that their sales will not see a dip following health warnings. "If a person wants to consume poison on his own then no one can stop him. I don't think there will be any change in the sales of tobacco," said Kaushik T., a cigarette vendor at R.K. Puram.

Flouting the Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products (Packing and Labeling) Rules 2008 would attract fines up to Rs.5,000 with or without two years of imprisonment for the manufacturer. The dealer or seller can be fined up to Rs.1,000 with or without a year's imprisonment. On subsequent offences, the fine would be Rs.10,000 for the manufacturer and he could be jailed for five years. The fine would be Rs.3,000 for the seller and he may be jailed for two years.

June 10, 2009 - As the theme of this year’s global No Tobacco Day without just cause. Starting on May 31st, global No Tobacco Day - WHO began a major information and lobbying campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of cigarette advertising. It also emphasized the effectiveness of placing pictorial images directly on cigarette packaging in dissuading people from starting smoking and providing an unambiguous depiction of the consequences of smoking for those who already smoke.

Proposals have already been submitted to Irish Government to amend the existing tobacco legislation, and one of these amendments will allow the Minister for Health to introduce combined text and photo warnings on tobacco products. It is anticipated that this will be enacted before the Dáil summer recess.

Popular wisdom would dictate that people are free to choose whether to smoke and graphic images would be unlikely to affect their knowledge of, or inclination to buy, cigarettes.However, a four-country survey conducted by Dr David Hammond for peer-reviewed journal Tobacco Control determined that smokers who live in countries which have government-mandated health warnings are far more likely to have knowledge of the negative effects of tobacco consumption.

It is estimated that close to 7,000 people die each year in Ireland from smoking-related illnesses, and tobacco has been identified by the WHO as the leading cause of death and disability in the world.

According to the Department of Health commissioned Survey of Lifestyles, Attitude and Nutrition (Slán), rates of smoking among the Irish populace have declined over the period 1998-2007 from 33 per cent to 29 per cent.

June 10, 2009 - Efforts to further restrict smoking in public venues appear dead for the 2009 regular legislative session.

The death knell came as the Louisiana House Health and Welfare Committee voted overwhelmingly against state Senate-passed legislation even after being “watered-down.” Senate Bill 186 would have banned smoking in all Louisiana bars, casinos and other gambling establishments. That was the version the Senate passed May 28 on a 22-10 vote.

The House rejected on June 2 a similar measure that would have banned smoking in bars and casinos on a 29 for to 71 against vote. Rep. Rob Marionneaux proposed a compromise that would have banned smoking only at bars that sell food. Lobbyists for casino and other gambling interests continued to oppose the legislation even after their businesses were exempted from the proposed ban.

The House panel approved Marionneaux’s amendment on a 10-5 vote. But later, the panel rejected the amended bill with six committee members voting for it and 11 voting against it.

June 10, 2009 - After more than half a century of debate and discussion, it is likely that Congress will pass legislation bringing tobacco products under the regulatory authority of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

For Ted Kennedy's sake alone let's hope this is a good piece of legislation that will protect our children for years to come from the ravages of nicotine addiction. Citi bank tells shareholders that if the FDA begins to regulate the tobacco industry, it would make little difference; many concessions have been granted to get tobacco companies to buy into this legislation weakening the bill even further.

We worry that the legislation has been flawed because the biggest player (with over half of the tobacco market) in the tobacco industry has been directly involved in writing the bill that regulates their industry. It's been stated that Philip Morris's conversion to support some form of FDA regulation was key to the bill's passage. But is this true at present with the Democrats the solid majority in both houses of Congress and a Democratic president supporting tobacco regulation. Matthew L. Myers the President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids has even said, “The election of Barack Obama changes everything.” Revise Senate's Version FDA Tobacco Regulation Bill..

June 9, 2009 - According to a WHO 2005 survey 60 percent of youths in Lebanon aged between 13 and 15 smoke cigarettes, narghile (hookah, water pipe, sheesha, shisha) or cigars, the highest number in the region. Overall, an estimated 42 percent of males and 30 percent of females smoke in Lebanon, a country of 4.5 million inhabitants, health experts say. Lebanon has signed and ratified the FCTC.

The anti-smoking lobby is barely a blip on the radar and the government cares little about the issue. So the price of Cuban Havanas is among the world's cheapest, about cigarettes are free of punitive pricing and health warnings are barely visible on the side of packs -- far from the bold warnings and pictures the World Health Organisation (WHO) is promoting on "World No Tobacco Day" on Sunday, May 31st.Even teenagers can afford the average one dollar per pack, compared to an average seven dollars (five euros) in France or nearly nine dollars in Britain.

George Saade, a cardiologist and head of the tobacco control unit at the ministry of health: Tobacco companies are very powerful in Lebanon and they are involved in many things that would raise concerns of conflict of interest elsewhere. They sponsorconcerts, television shows and sports events where free cigarettes are sometimes distributed. You even see them at ski resorts. Where there are youths, there are tobacco companies."

An estimated 3,500 people die annually from illnesses related to smoking, they said."In the last five years we have seen a 17-percent increase in cardio-vascular disease while the United States saw a 17-percent drop for the same period," Saade said.

The area manager for Philip Morris, the largest importer of cigarettes in Lebanon, rejected the accusations. British American Tobacco, the second largest importer of cigarettes in the country.

June 9, 2009 - RALEIGH, N.C. — Members of a House committee have removed a provision that would raise North Carolina's cigarette tax by 25 cents per pack. The House Finance Committee agreed Tuesday morning to delete the cigarette tax increase contained in a proposed $940 million tax plan. That would reduce the package by $123 million. The 22-7 decision means less money available to restore cuts in the proposed $18 billion spending package for next year.

Rep. Van Braxton of Lenoir County offered the amendment. The Democrat said the tobacco industry already has been hit enough this year by a federal cigarette tax increase and a ban on smoking in restaurants and bars.

The House Appropriations Committee is reviewing the budget proposal and was expected to vote on it later Tuesday, June 9th.

June 9., 2009 - Frieden has served as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Dr. Frieden, a 48-year-old infectious disease specialist, has cut a high and sometimes contentious profile in his seven years as New York’s top health official under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. He led the crusade to ban smoking in restaurants and bars, pushed to make H.I.V. testing a routine part of medical exams, and defended a program that passes out more than 35 million condoms a year. In 2003, the city banned ban smoking in almost all workplaces, a precedent-setting move that inspired other cities to do the same. New York also instituted cigarette tax hikes. Health officials estimate the city has 300,000 fewer smokers now than in 2002, which should translate to fewer cancer cases. Smoking Ban Helps NYC Stop Smoking...

In 2006, New York became the first U.S. city to ban restaurants from using artificial trans fats, and required hundreds of eateries to post calorie counts on their menus.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Frieden acknowledged the challenge and said partnering with other agencies will be more crucial than it was in New York.He listed smoking as the nation's No. 1 health issue, and stressed the importance of fighting preventable illnesses. But in carefully worded responses, he did not reveal plans for any new campaigns, saying his initial goal is to work with CDC staff to build future plans.

said it will appeal the decision. Reynolds spokesman David Howard said. "We believe the verdict will ultimately be reversed." The award in the Martin case is by far the highest of the seven cases in which a ruling has been made. Plaintiffs have won five cases and the manufacturers two. Howard said that the damages awarded in the other two cases involving Reynolds were just compensatory, and the juries found the plaintiff 50 percent at fault. "Therefore, Reynolds is liable for half the damages amount," he said.Philip Morris USA has appealed an $8 million jury award and Liggett Group Inc. has appealed a $700,000 award. Reynolds also is facing jury awards of $1.5 million and $1.2 million.

As pointed out in January 2008, Cigarette Makers Face Thousands of New Florida Lawsuits... Howard said that Reynolds is aware of at least 3,284 potential individual lawsuits, of which Reynolds is a defendant in 3,270. Analysts have said there is the potential for about 8,000 of these individual lawsuits in Florida.

Edward Sweda, a senior attorney for the Tobacco Products Liability Project in Boston, said he believes the $30 million jury award is another major blow to the tobacco industry.

Orbs, being test marketed in 3-sites in the U.S., are not to be chewed but like lozenges are placed in the mouth until the product has dissolved.

Candy can be defined as a confection made with sugar and often flavoring and filling.A confection is a sweet preparation, such as candy.

Camel Dissolvables Flavors - Strips will come in fresh mint flavor and Sticks in Mellow; Orbs are now available in both flavors. Mellow - as an adjective (e.g. mellow Camel ORBS) can be defined as soft, sweet, and full-flavored from ripeness. The other flavor fresh mint like spearmint and peppermint are often the varieties of fresh mint that are used to flavor candy, desserts, and other items.

Camel ORBS - are available in fresh mint and mellow that user places in their mouth but does not chew. We have visually compared ORBS with the Tic Tacs - brand of small, hard sweet pellets centered around breath mints, though the line includes non-mint flavors.

Both products are pellets both are placed in your mouth until dissolved; these pellets are sweet, contain flavoring and other ingredients, of course the ORBS has added powdered tobacco. The original Tic Tac flavor has a fresh mint flavor. We wonder if a user can tell he difference - the tobacco taste surely must be masked.

As Senator Burr points out there is no healthy way to use tobacco. No matter what the risk is the young adult or the kid that wants to be a young adult will be a nicotine addict their whole life never able to achieve their full potential.

On May 27, CNN’s Carol Costello reported on tobacco company R.J. Reynolds new dissolvable “smokeless products.” Noting that critics call them “tobacco lollipops” that are aimed at getting “kids hooked on nicotine,” Costello reported that “R.J. Reynolds will soon test three new products — Camel sticks that dissolve as you suck them, minty tobacco strips that look like breath strips, and orbs — flavored, dissolvable tablets that some say look and taste exactly like candy.”On the Senate floor yesterday, Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) came to the tobacco company’s defense, claiming that it wasn’t trying to deceive anyone; it’s CNN’s fault for labeling Camel Orbs as candy. Burr charged that CNN “mischaracterized the product” because “it’s not candy flavored”:

BURR: But when CNN did their story. Take a guess on the angle that they took. They labeled it as candy. Candy! Even though it’s not candy flavored. They said it was candy. … No, they said it was candy. That’s where they labeled it. … They portrayed Reynolds America as being deceptive and luring children. No candy. It’s not going in the candy section. It’s in the tobacco section where smokeless and stick products is.

Later in his speech, Burr responded to Sen. Jeff Merkley’s (D-OR) criticism that some of the dissolvable tobacco products are in containers shaped like cell phones to attract kids. “Let me assure you, Mr. President, if a cell phone doesn’t work, children don’t want it,” said Burr.

While Burr might claim that the Orbs aren’t “candy-flavored,” the fact is that they come in “mint and cinnamon flavors” known as “fresh” and “mellow.” Additionally, the tobacco industry has a well-documented history of using flavored tobacco to market their products to children:

Documents from the tobacco industry also contradict these claims. A report from R.J. Reynolds in 1985 stated: “Sweetness can impart a different delivery taste dimension, which younger adult smokers may be receptive to, as evidenced by their taste wants in other product areas.” A Brown & Williamson report from 1972 suggested consideration of developing cola-flavored and apple-flavored cigarettes. The report also suggested a sweet-flavored cigarette and stated: “It’s a well-known fact that teenagers like sweet products. Honey might be considered.” If flavored products were appealing to youth then, what has changed to make them less appealing to youth now?

Burr’s speech today follows his earlier claims that regulating tobacco by the FDA would contradict the agency’s mission to protect public health since there is no healthy way to use tobacco. Burr, whose hometown Winston-Salem is also the home of R.J. Reynolds, is the second-highest recipient of campaign contributions from Big Tobacco.

Guam’s medical community is making a proactive approach to raise taxes for distributors of cigarettes. As the Guam medical community takes on this quarter-of-a-billion-dollar tobacco industry, they must be prepared to face the full arsenal of political and financial resources that "big and rich tobacco on Guam" will use to stop any increase in the price of cigarettes – even if it means saving the lives of our people.

A member of the Guam Medical Society will hand carry a resolution to the American Medical Association to ask for their endorsement.Excerpts from the resolution: Whereas Guam has the highest tobacco use per capita of any US state or territory; and Whereas Guam has a corresponding highest cancer and cardiovascular rate attributed to tobacco use; and Whereas it is hoped that an increased tax would move to correct the health problem wrought by tobacco products and secondarily bring necessary increase in revenue to Government of Guam to address the health problems associated with tobacco use; therefore be it RESOLVED, that our American Medical Association endorse the Guam Medical Society (GMS) efforts to have local legislation to sharply increase the Guam tobacco tax, which is the lowest in United States of America, in order to decrease the consumption of industrialized tobacco products.

This resolution will signify the beginning of a political fight that will separate those who care about our people and those who care only about the money to be made in the big business of tobacco.

For one simple reason…increasing the cost of cigarettes saves lives. It reduces the number of smokers. It reduces the number of kids who start smoking. It reduces the number of smoking-related health illnesses. That means healthier people, less cancer and other smoking-related diseases, and fewer kids taking up this life-taking habit.

Studies worldwide have shown that a 10% increase in the price of cigarettes results in a 4% decrease in the number of adults who smoke. However, in states like New York, where the combined federal, state and local taxes on cigarettes total $4.64 per pack (about 58% of an average $8 cash register price), cigarette sales have dropped by 20%.

The challenge? Raising the price of cigarettes and reducing the number of smokers takes money away from the established and powerful tobacco wholesalers who, in the past, have successfully flexed their political muscle to stave off all but nominal increases to the tobacco tax.

But it’s not just the doctors who are fighting to reduce smoking on Guam. In a story covered by Calvo-owned KUAM, Coordinator for the Tobacco-Free Program for Public Health Gil Sugitan said: “With the highest adult tobacco use rate on Guam, we wanted to bring our partners such as the Cancer Information Services of the Pacific, health partners -- Mental Health, Public Health, the American Cancer Society and the PEACE Project -- to get together to train individuals from the health community, community based organizations and other entities that we can work with people who are ready to quit using tobacco."

Over the next few weeks, GuamNewsFactor will follow the development of this campaign to save lives. We’ll explore the successes of states where increased tobacco costs have reduced the incidence of smoking. We’ll explore the lucrative business of tobacco wholesale. We’ll analyze the political alliances that will support and oppose this initiative as well as the media conflicts that will shape this ongoing debate. And we will hold elected officials accountable to you, the people of Guam, on their commitment to end smoking on our island and save the lives of our people.

June 8, 2009 - Former health minister Farid Anfasa Moeloek, who now heads the National Commission on Tobacco Control: More money is spent on cigarettes than on rice in low-income families that include a smoker, a former health minister said on Tuesday. “A smoker in the family can mean that up to 17 days of the family income is spent on cigarettes,” said during a health discussion on smoking. “This means that only 13 days of their income is left for food and other household necessities. This increases the likelihood of children suffering learning difficulties and other problems due to malnutrition.”

Farid: “Given that 70 percent of the country’s smokers come from low-income families, Indonesia faces losing a generation of children, adding that the data came from research conducted in 2007 by the University of Indonesia’s Demographic Institute.Farid said: It important that the government finalize the law on tobacco control (WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC)) which has been languishing in the House of Representatives since 2004. He said that by adopting the law, Indonesia could better protect its citizens, especially the poor and the young. The law addresses the need for smoke-free zones, a ban on selling cigarettes to under-aged children and outlawing cigarette advertising, as well as raising taxes on cigarettes. “If we can adopt this law, income from higher cigarette taxes can be allocated to help people suffering from tobacco-related ailments.”

Indonesia currently charges a 37 percent tax on tobacco and earns about Rp 42 trillion ($3.5 billion) annually from the tax.

Indonesia remains one of only four countries yet to ratify the 2004 World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which provides for tobacco control measures related to the production, sale, distribution, advertisement and taxation of tobacco. “I don’t know why we haven’t ratified this convention,” Farid said, adding that the mortality rate for tobacco-related ailments in Indonesia stood at 22 percent, including 32,400 infant deaths in 2006 linked to smoking, according to Unicef data.

Frid added: “Protecting our young generation is important as they have become the main targets of cigarette advertising.”

According to a global youth tobacco survey conducted by the World Health Organization in 2006, 14.4 percent of Indonesian students between the ages of 13 and 15 were smokers, while separate research in 2007 found that 41.5 percent of student smokers said they were influenced by cigarette ads.

Research by the National Commission on Child Protection showed cigarette companies sponsored 1,350 youth-oriented events in the first 10 months of 2007. A 2007 UN report that tracks countries’ progress in meeting the Millennium Development Goals said that nationally, the number of malnourished children under the age of 5 remained relatively high despite reductions in the last two decades. “Smoking also increases the risk of miscarriage, as well as of delivering a low-weight or premature baby,” Farid said.

The consolidated market share of the Sampoerna brand and the Philip Morris brand was also very slightly down to 29 percent from 29.5 percent. But the Philip Morris market share rose to 4.7 percent from 4.5 percent. Sampoerna is controlled by US-based cigarette giant Philip Morris, which includes the world famous Marlboro brand.Sampoerna did not explain the reasons behind the slight decline in the market share of its Sampoerna-brand nor the rise in its overall cigarette sales. The company's president director, Kevin Douglas Click, only said he was upbeat sales would remain stronger this year. Indonesia is a haven for smokers as Vice President Jusuf Kalla once said that the country had the cheapest cigarette prices in the world due to its low excise taxes.

Aside from Sampoerna and Philip Morris, the country also houses five other renowned giant tobacco companies; PT Gudang Garam, PT Djarum, PT Nojorono, PT Bentoel, and PT British American Tobacco (BAT) Indonesia.

Sampoerna's rival publicly listed BAT, which sells international brands including Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Dunhill, Ardath, Kansas and Commfil, announced Wednesday that sales volume was still growing even though Indonesia was still facing negative effects from the economic downturn. The company, however, suffered a decline in its market share during the first quarter of the year to 2 percent down from 2.5 percent compared to the same period last year.

BAT refused to explain any details on the drop in its market share, and sales volume.BAT president director Ian Morton merely said that the tobacco industry in Indonesia was more resilient than other sectors in confronting the crisis.

June 8, 2009 - With cigarette sales up the government may raise the cigarette excise rate by 10%. Director general of customs and excise Anwar Suprijadi told The Jakarta Post Thursday, June 4th the government would impose higher excise rates for cigarettes and tobacco next year (2010) to raise more state revenue. Anwar said: “There won’t be any rate increase this year as agreed between the industry (protect the cigarette industry’s employment rate amid sluggish growth in other labor-intensive sectors) and the government. That’s why we aim for the 10 percent rise next year.”